Impact of Automobile Pollutants

"Driving a private car is probably a typical citizen's most polluting daily activity." - US EPA

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How do cars and trucks contribute to climate change?

Carbon dioxide emissions arise at nearly every stage of a motor vehicle's life - including extraction of raw materials and manufacturing of component parts - and through the combustion of gasoline and diesel fuels during vehicle use which accounts for the greatest share of vehicle-related carbon dioxide emissions. According to Gregory Homel, an eHow contributor the vast majority of automobile in the world burn some type of fossil fuel, usually gasoline, diesel or oil, in a combustion engine to produce the power needed to travel. When fossil fuels are burned they create pollution in form of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane, which are released in muffler of vehicles. The vehicles we drive release over 1.7 billion metric tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere each year contributing to the global climate change. Each gallon of gasoline you burn creates 20 pounds of carbon dioxide, that is about 6 to 9 tons of carbon dioxide each year for a typical vehicle.

WHAT CAN I DO? 

1. Walking and Biking. This is the most simple and easy way to help stop climate change and global warming. Walking and biking will not release carbon dioxide and because of that you are helping our environment. Change starts with us. 
2. Use public transportation more often.  Taking the bus, the train or other forms of public transportation is like hitting two birds with one stone it can lessen the load on the roads and reduces one's individual greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 1600 pounds per year. 
3. Purchase an efficient car.  The most important personal decision for global warming is the car you drive. The next time you buy a car, get a hybrid or choose the least polluting, most efficient car that meets your needs. Better gas mileage not only reduces global warming but also saves you money at the pump. 
4. Drive Smart.  If all Americans maintained proper air pressure in their tires, nationwide gasoline use would decrease by 2%. A properly tuned engine could boost gas mileage from 4% to 40% and a new air filter can improve gas mileage by up to 10%.  
5. Plant a tree. A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime. Shade provided by trees can also reduce your air conditioning bill by 10 to 15%.  

"Reducing global warming on the road is a shared responsibility... automakers, fuel providers, consumers, and various level of government can help solve the problem by addressing those aspects of carbon dioxide emissions they can control" - John DeCicco, author of the report Global Warming on the Road: The Climate Impact of America's automobile

References (for more information):

• U.S. Autos Account for Half of Global Warming Linked to Cars Worldwide by Larry West
• CAR COMPANIES AND CLIMATE CHANGE: MEASURING THE CARBON INTENSITY OF SALES AND PROFITS by Duncan Austin and Amanda Sauer
• How Is Car Pollution Causing Global Warming? by Gregory Hamel
• Reduce Climate Change
• Top Ten Actions You Can Take to Help Stop Global Warming